Abstract
The performance of a multi-reflection time-of-flight (MR-ToF) mass spectrometer is evaluated under the use of four voltage feedback loops to actively regulate its mirror potentials. Different electronic hardware is characterized to find the most useful configuration for parallel regulation of all of the MR-ToF analyzer's reflecting potentials. The gain in mass resolving power for low-abundance ion species is demonstrated by measuring pairs of molecular isobars of zinc clusters and analyzed in the context of expected flight-time fluctuations. For higher-abundance species, the resolving powers reached in short- and long-term measurements are probed with bismuth-cluster ions, resulting in values up to 500 000 and 200 000, respectively, in the absence of offline corrections. Additionally, feedback-loop regulation is found to be advantageous for changes of experiment cycles in which voltages are switched for, e.g., ion ejection.
Highlights
The concept of the electrostatic ion beam trap (EIBT), originally developed for the study of molecular properties,1,2 has been firmly incorporated into the field of precision mass measurements in recent years, where it is known as the multi-reflection time-offlight (MR-ToF) mass spectrometer
The fundamental principle of MR-ToF devices is the retention of charged particles between two electrostatic mirrors by reflecting them back and forth
The gain of multiple stabilization loops is illustrated by tracking the flight time of pairs of zinc clusters with identical mass numbers—so-called molecular isobars—and bismuth-cluster ions
Summary
The concept of the electrostatic ion beam trap (EIBT), originally developed for the study of molecular properties, has been firmly incorporated into the field of precision mass measurements in recent years, where it is known as the multi-reflection time-offlight (MR-ToF) mass spectrometer. The fundamental principle of MR-ToF devices is the retention of charged particles between two electrostatic mirrors by reflecting them back and forth.. In nuclear physics, this is used to quickly and accurately measure the mass-to-charge ratio of short-lived species.. The mass resolving power R = m/δm, characterizing the system’s ability to separate ion species with small mass differences δm, is one of the most important parameters. Long flight times achieved by the reflections between the ion mirrors have been shown to enable resolving powers on the order of several hundred thousands.
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